Stags Squad for Hampshire

NATIONAL UNDER-20S READY TO KICK OFF

This season’s National Under-20 Championship kicks off in London & South East with four matches on Sunday January 27.

Hertfordshire Stags' opening match is against Hampshire at Winchester RFC, ko 2.15pm and they have selected the following squad for the match.

1. Paul Brown, Bishop Stortford

2. Joe Coston, Old Albanians

3. Ollie Day, Bishop Stortford

4. Craig South, Hertford

5. Miles Dempsey Fullerians

6. Neil Mckinnon, Old Albanians

7. Michael Winters, Hertford

8. Sean Flatman, Letchworth

9. Elliot Birkbeck, Northampton

10. Tom Sadler, Saracens Amateurs

11. Tom Johnson, Oakland’s College

12. Joe Weston, Saracens Amateurs

13. Carling Colfer, Old Albanians

14. Francis Denny, Old Albanians

15. Henry Robinson, Letchworth

16. Sam England, Old Albanians

17. Tom Haller, Old Albanians

18 Joe Frewin, Fullerians

20 Jamie Molly

21 Zak Vinnicombe, Fullerians

22 Joe Oyesiku, Finchley

The London & South East’s seven county teams plus the Army’s Under-20s are split into two regional groups of four teams, each playing the other once within the group.

Hertfordshire is in Region B and the other match in that group is Sussex v The Army at Aldershot. In Region A, Surrey take on Kent at Dorking RFC, and Middlesex host Essex at West London RFC.

The winners of regions A and B will then play off to be crowned as the Divisional Champions. In addition, the second, third and fourth placed teams also play off against each other. All these matches will be played on March 30 at the Army Stadium, Aldershot.

The Divisional Champions go forward to the national semi-finals. Yorkshire are the defending National Under-20 champions, having beaten Devon in the final at Twickenham last May.

The various Under-20 squads have been busy with warm-up fixtures. Hertfordshire Stags picked up useful experience against older sides in an Old Albanians Development Squad and the county Under-23s.

Hertfordshire's Championship fixtures 2007-08:

London & South East Region B

January 27

Hampshire U20 v Hertfordshire U20 (Winchester RFC)

February 17

Sussex U20 v Hertfordshire U20 (Chichester RFC)

March 2

Hertfordshire U20 v Army U20 (Hertford RFC)

Two Hertfordshire Men to Coach England Saxons

Steve Bates and Simon Hardy, two familiar faces in Hertfordshire rugby, form part of this year’s England Saxons coaching team for the 2008 shadow Six Nations competition. Newcastle Falcons coach Steve Bates will be head coach and he will be joined by the RFU’s National Academy coaches Graham Rowntree and Simon Hardy.

As a scrum half Steve Bates enjoyed a long and successful career alongside Rob Andrew at London Wasps, during which time he played 11 County Championship matches for Hertfordshire. He won one England cap against Romania in Bucharest in the summer of 1989 and toured South Africa with England in 1994.

He moved north to take up a coaching role with Newcastle Falcons in 1995 and was the club’s head coach until 2003, leaving to take over as director of rugby at Borders, who he led into the Heineken Cup.

Steve went on to coach Scotland A at the Barclays Churchill Cup in 2006, where they beat England Saxons 13-7 in Toronto, before returning to Kingston Park as Coaching and Technical Director in the summer of 2007.

As a teacher at Lord Wandsworth College in Hampshire, he was instrumental in the development of the young Jonny Wilkinson, who joined the Falcons on his recommendation in 1997.

Simon Hardy is a World Cup winner with England, having been the specialist lineout coach for 81 Tests, including the Six Nations winning sides of 2000 and 2001 and a memorable 2003 when they won a Grand Slam, beat New Zealand and Australia Down Under and then returned to Sydney to lift the Webb Ellis Cup. In his specialist capacity, he also worked with the England team in advance of last year’s 2007 Rugby World Cup.

A hooker for Saracens, Wasps and England U23 before his playing career was ended by injury, the Loughborough University graduate joined the Rugby Football Union as Youth Development Officer for Hertfordshire in 1990. He became South West Technical Administrator two years later and was National Coach Development Manager between 1994 and 1999. He joined England part-time before the 1999 World Cup, going full-time in 2000.

As one of the RFU’s National Academy Coaches, he works as a coach and mentor with England’s up and coming players.

This will be his second stint with England Saxons, having been part of the successful 2006 Churchill Cup coaching team.

The England Saxons will play two fixtures against Ireland A at Welford Road on Friday 1 February (kick off 7.45pm) and Italy A in Sicily on Saturday 9 February (kick off 6.15pm local time).

Herts Stags Prepare for Championship

For this season's RFU U20 Championship, the London and South East division is split into two groups of four with each county playing the others in their group. Hertfordshire Stags (under 20s side) are in Group B which means they play the following group games.

Away to Hampshire on Sunday 27th January at Winchester Rugby Club, North Walls Park, off Nuns Road, Winchester, Hants. SO23 7EF kick off 2.15

Away to Sussex on Sunday 17th February at Chichester Rugby Club, Oaklands Park, Wellington Road, Chichester, West Sussex PO19 6BB kick off 2.15

Home to the Army on Sunday 2nd March at Hertford Rugby Club kick off 2.15.

The winners of each group then play off to be crowned as the Divisional Champions. In addition the second third and fourth placed also play off against each other. These games will all be played on 30th March at the Army Stadium at Aldershot. The match between the group winners is also the quarter final match for the main championship.

The winner of the division then play the semi final on the weekend of 10th/11th May and it will be against the winners of the South West division. The final is on Saturday 24th May at Twickenham.

The team, under lead coach Dave Phillips, has had two warm up matches against Old Albanians Development Squad and the county under 23 side. Although they lost both games against sides older than them they showed enough good points for us to look forward with confidence to the championship matches.